Eos
by VR Trakowski
Summary: When it's all over, what do you do next?
1. Chapter 1

**This is based _only_ on the films. I have no knowledge of the Expanded Universe. The only books I've read are a couple of the early Han Solo adventure novels, and _Splinter of the Mind's Eye*_****. We were younger and more innocent then.**

***(Poor Alan Dean Foster. It wasn't his fault.)**

* * *

He couldn't sleep.

Poe lay back on the smooth slope of his X-wing's snout, arms folded behind his head. The healing scar on his arm ached, but he ignored it, looking up at the leaves moving slowly overhead in a breeze he couldn't feel. Occasionally a star twinkled through, like the wink of a friendly eye.

It was better out here, alone in the darkness, than in the stuffy warmth of their bunkroom, trying not to fidget and disturb the others. Rey woke screaming, sometimes, to stutter out disjointed fragments of horrific dreams; Finn wept in his sleep, calling to friends whose dead faces he saw behind the helmets of Stormtroopers. They needed what rest they could get.

Poe just…stayed awake, mostly.

_We should be happy._ And in a sense they were; relieved, mostly, to have the war done, the First Order crushed. The war _won_. The Sith gone; finally, completely _gone_. Rey was sure of it, with a serene certainty that was impossible to challenge.

But they had lost so much. Too much, Poe thought, though he acknowledged that given the alternative they would still have paid the price.

_It wasn't win or lose. It was win or die. _ And not just people or even worlds; it would have been the death of freedom, of hope, of light in the darkness.

The leaves fluttered, and somewhere a night creature sang to itself, a monotonous chirp of three notes up, three notes down. He didn't worry about it. Any hostile life forms on this world had left the area months ago, when the Resistance had first set up its base.

Now the remaining fighters sat idle, mostly, though the number shrank day by day as people returned to their homes. It was strange; after so long spent fighting, Poe found himself directionless. Rey was full of plans for a new Jedi Academy, Finn cautiously eager to be her first apprentice, and Poe admitted – silently – to a little envy. Not just of their Force sensitivity, but of their sense of _purpose_.

"Maybe I should take Zorii up on it," he muttered to himself. "She's probably halfway to the colonies by now – "

"No."

Poe spasmed, nearly sliding off the ship, and grabbed for his blaster, but the form glowing gently in the dark just to one side – crosslegged in air – was not intimidated.

And why should it be, Poe thought bitterly, reholstering the weapon and pushing up to sit. "What are _you_ doing here?"

"Looking for you." Kylo Ren's expression was grave, almost sad, and Poe swallowed a hint of bile.

"Well, you sure found me. What the hell do you want? Did Rey send you?" He knew she talked to Ren from time to time – it drove Finn _crazy_ – but Poe didn't even want to think about her chatting with a murdering would-be Sith, redeemed or not.

"No. She doesn't know I'm here." Ren's hands dangled off his knees and his hair was in his eyes, making him a vaguely ungainly figure in almost ridiculous contrast to the Force glow around him. "You shouldn't go."

Anger rose up roaring. "Who are _you_ to tell me anything, you murderous scum? You _killed_ the General! You killed _your own father!_" It was white heat in his chest - memories of stark fear in Rey's eyes, friends dying all around him, villages slaughtered wholesale, planets blasted to dust. His fist beat the metal beneath him and Poe scarcely noticed. "_How dare you come back!"_

"I'm sorry."

It was like missing a lightspeed jump, the same sense of slamming into a wall. Poe gaped at Ren. "What?"

Ren regarded him steadily. "I'm sorry for what I've done. All of it."

Poe opened his mouth, then closed it, fury tangling with confusion. "And…and what, you think, you think that makes it all _better?_"

"No." Ren shook his hair out of his face. "I can't fix the harm I've done."

"Then why are you even here?" Poe gestured at him. "Aren't you supposed to… move on or something?"

"I can't." Ren arched a brow, wry. "I know Rey explained the Dyad to you. We're bound together by the Force."

"So you're going to haunt her for the rest of her life. Great." Poe gave a bitter snort. "That's just _great_."

Ren tilted his head, and Poe refused, _refused_ to believe that the ghost sympathized, but then the blue-lit eyes narrowed. "You're bleeding."

Poe blinked, and only then felt the hot trickle down his arm. Muttering under his breath, he dug a rag out of his pocket and managed to wrap the old wound, though he had to use his teeth to tie the bandage.

Unfortunately, Ren was still there when he was finished. "What do you _want?_" Poe demanded.

Force spirits didn't need to breathe, but Poe still got the impression that Ren had pulled in air. "To apologize. To you."

Poe found his mouth hanging open again. "I ordered your capture, and I tortured you. Invaded your mind." Ren bit his lip, then continued. "It was wrong, and I'm sorry."

Under the surprise, Poe's immediate impulse was to throw the words back at that glowing figure, but he held himself still and let the revulsion subside. "You think I can forgive you just like that?" He snapped his fingers.

"I'm not asking for forgiveness." Ren's voice was quiet. "You deserve an apology. That's all."

Once again, Poe didn't know what to say.

"You should stay. Rey needs you. They both do." Ren's small smile was enough to make Poe blink again. "Everyone needs time to heal. Even you, General Dameron."

The figure faded, taking the light with him. After a moment, Poe rubbed his eyes, afterimages dancing against his lids.

_What…was…that? _

He felt like he'd been grazed by a stun bolt. Of all the things he might have expected from Kylo Ren, repentance had never been on the list.

He reached for his anger, but it had collapsed like a pricked bladder, and all he felt was tired. Too tired to walk back to the bunkhouse.

Poe forced himself to climb up to the X-wing's cockpit and clamber inside, settling down in the seat and propping his head awkwardly on one of the side panels. For once, sleep was chasing him, and he meant to be caught.

His last coherent thought was _I still don't like him. _


	2. Chapter 2

It was just a little weird to have the breeze blowing _under_ her as well as over.

Rey let the habitual thought slide past. It had taken her a while to grasp the concept of deliberate meditation, and it turned out that doing it midair worked best for her, though she had no idea why.

She was spending a lot of time meditating, these days. It had been more than a month since...since the end, and while Rey had a goal, she wasn't at all sure how to reach it. Meditation didn't always help, but it did make her thoughts clearer.

When she let the state go and opened her eyes, Ben was there, as he so often was. Standing in midair this time, so his eyes were level with hers; blue underlain with amber, and free from sullen anger at last.

Rey wished she'd had a chance to see that for longer than a few seconds, without the blue. She wished it so much it _hurt_.

But Ben knew that, so there was no need to say so, and she knew he wished it too, even if he was beyond pain now.

"Not regret," he said quietly, and Rey blew out a breath and let herself sink to the ground.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to bring it all up."

Ben drifted downwards, one corner of his mouth curling up. "Maybe it's just as well. I wouldn't want to interfere with your little trio."

If he'd been solid, she would have punched his shoulder; as it was, Rey rolled her eyes. "Liar."

Ben chuckled, and matched her as she started wandering along her training path. BB-8 rolled out of the underbrush he'd been rooting in and whistled courteously as he joined them.

"Good morning," Ben returned gravely, and Rey shook her head.

"I still think it's weird that droids can see you."

Ben shrugged. "The Force works within all living things. Yes - " He opened one hand. "They're not _alive_ as such. Do _you_ want to argue with the Force?"

Rey snickered. "Not about that."

They strolled along in easy silence for a little while. Rey had spent her recent years mostly alone; while she was very glad to have friends - _family_ \- now, there were times when she needed space. And Ben showing up out of nowhere tended to make people nervous anyway.

_Or spitting mad._ Finn, being Force-sensitive, was coming around to a wary acceptance. Poe…

...They were still working on Poe.

"Isn't that a violation of your Jedi oath?" Ben said thoughtfully, though the look he shot her was teasing. "_Relationships."_

Rey gave him a Force shove that made him laugh. "Says the other half of the Dyad. Besides, I have dispensation."

His brows shot up. "Oh?"

Their bond had lost the humming physical potential when he'd died, but in its place came a much clearer mental connection. Rey opened the memory to him and he slid into it without effort.

_The same paths, almost the same conversation. Mentor/mother/Master walks beside her, a well of calm and compassion that Rey wonders at and loves. _

"_I know Jedi aren't supposed to have this kind of...relationship but - "_

_Leia interrupts her. "That kind of withholding never did them the least bit of good, as far as I could tell." She snorts gently. "I always thought it was stupid to make someone 'search' their feelings and then turn around and tell them they're not supposed to have any." _

_She lifts a hand, and her rings catch the light in tiny twinkles. "Luke and I had a bond of our own, even before we knew what we were. Made us a little crazy there for a while too. And he never denied it." _

_They walk, thinking about the looming conflict, how little time there ever is. _

"_We're talking the end of the galaxy here, Rey." Leia's voice is dry, but her eyes are kind, always kind. "You do what you need to, to survive. All of you." _

_Her lips quirk. "This is your Master speaking, by the way." _

_And Rey has to laugh. _

Ben smiled. "That's her. She never had a lot of use for the rules."

"Do you see her?" Rey blurted, then covered her mouth. "Oh - "

Ben shook his head, fingers skimming over her arm even though his touch was lighter than the breeze's. "It's okay. I - _seeing_ isn't the right word. But...we aren't apart."

Rey relaxed. "Good, that's...good."

"It doesn't bother me, you know," he added. "You and Finn and Poe. Rey, she was right. You should love who you can, while you can. There's no point in being alone."

Oh, how she _wished_ things had been just a little bit different. Rey knew it was unbecoming of a Jedi to resent reality like this, but it was still so raw and she couldn't -

"_Rey."_ Ben swung around in front of her and reached out. His hands couldn't quite land on her shoulders, her palms didn't quite meet his chest, but the press of their foreheads was almost real for a moment; and then the mesh of their minds made the physical unimportant.

Anguish faded under that communion. The Force sang through them, a note of harmony that shook them and soothed them to peace.

Underneath it all was the cracked stone of their past - anger on both sides, loneliness, abandonment. Ben's utter shame at what he'd done, saved from agony only by his death; and it was only that repentance that had allowed Rey to forgive him completely.

_We're together, _she murmured into the bond. _That's the most important thing._

_I will never leave you,_ he promised back. _Even if I could, I would not._

Falsehood was not possible between them. For a timeless moment, Rey rested in the embrace of Ben's soul, gathering courage. There was so _much_ to do, and she had almost no idea of how to do it.

But she was the only one who could restore the Jedi. It wasn't her dream - her dream had only ever been enough to eat, and her family back. Becoming a Jedi was the path thrown in front of her in the middle of a scrambling war, and she'd taken it up and helped to save the galaxy.

_Not too shabby,_ Ben said, amused and tender. And she had to laugh again.

When they drew back to the material plane, it was with a bittersweet sigh, but the hunger in Rey's heart had abated for the moment, her pain subsided. They began walking again, BB-8 ranging ahead and trilling to himself.

"Do you have any suggestions?" Rey asked, using her staff to bat aside a vine that had dangled far enough to reach the path.

Ben made a wry face. "I was never a Jedi, you know. Just an apprentice. But I'm guessing that Luke made up a lot of it as he went along."

She chewed her lip. "I suppose I could ask the Jedi, they're all _there_…"

"But you're not comfortable with it." His tone did not press.

Rey grimaced. "It's a lot," she admitted. "I'm not sure I want to open that door unless I must."

"Then don't." The simple approval made her feel a little easier. "Besides. You don't have to decide all at once."

"That's true."

They couldn't hold hands, or kiss, or even spend all of their time together. But the Dyad bond held firm, and Rey drew strength from it.

"You'll figure it out," Ben said with quiet confidence. "You have Finn and Poe to help you. Rey, I don't think there's anything you can't do, if you put your mind to it."

She looked up at his beloved face, unscarred now, and knew he was thinking of her hand on his abdomen, her refusal to give in to him - or to give up on him.

"I did win, in the end," she told him, and he gave her that beautiful smile.

"And I've never been so happy to lose."

A sharp whistle broke in, and Rey puffed a laugh. "All right, I'm coming!" she called to BB-8, and gestured with her staff. "Shall we go?"

"Lead on, Master Skywalker," Ben said with mock solemnity, and she hurried to catch up with the droid.

No, she didn't know what she was doing...but Rey was pretty certain she would get there eventually.

With a little help from her friends.


	3. Chapter 3

The little meadow was filled with sun, and they were enjoying it. In fact, Poe was snoring.

Finn lay back in the grass, feeling the heat soaking into his muscles, tired after a morning spent training. "I suppose a Jedi doesn't give his friend a wet Weequay while he's sleeping," he murmured.

Next to him, Rey snickered. "I'm afraid so," she said lazily, stretching out on her stomach and pillowing her head on her arms. "If we can find more blooming vines, on the other hand…"

Finn grinned at the sky. The last time they'd caught Poe unawares, they had managed to half-bury him in bright blue vine-pollen, and his roars of outrage had only been quelled by the fact that moving the stuff had been Finn's first success in using Force powers.

He still marveled sometimes at how much things had changed in so short a time. From a brainwashed pawn to a Resistance general to a Jedi apprentice; from someone with no name or family to one part of a stable triplet.

And, as it happened, a cousin; Jannah's tribe had all had gene scans done as part of Lando's effort to find their homes, and it turned out that she and Finn were distantly related. She too was Force-sensitive, and Finn was spending a lot of time lately trying to convince her to join the Jedi academy when Rey got it up and running. At the moment it was more plans than anything else.

Finn felt a now-familiar shift in the Force, and looked over to see Ben fading into view on Rey's other side. "Poe wants to use one of the leftover Star Destroyers as a mobile training ground," Finn told him. "What do you think?"

Ben looped his arms around his pulled-up knees; Finn had finally gotten used to being able to see through him. "It's not a bad idea. You'll reach more students that way."

"That's what I said." Rey grinned at Ben, who smiled back, a look that didn't so much shut out the rest of the galaxy as forget it existed. The familiar small pang shot through Finn; he wasn't jealous, not really, but he and Poe would forever be on the outside of _that_ relationship.

Finn looked the other way. Poe was awake now, watching Rey and Ben, but he glanced over at Finn and raised a brow, _look what we have to put up with_, and it made Finn chortle.

Rey sighed theatrically. "No respect for your master, apprentice?"

"Gotta be worthy," Finn retorted, and Rey squawked and rolled over to tickle him.

Finn yelped. "Hey! Little help here!"

"Use the Force, young Jedi," Poe intoned sententiously. Ben was watching with an amused expression, and Finn made a face at them both before managing to pin Rey.

"They're both cheating," Poe said to Ben, then tackled Finn. "Time to die, Stormtrooper!"

"You wish, Rebel scum!" Finn grabbed him, Rey whooped beneath them both, and after that it was a free-for-all, scuffling and wrestling and spurts of laughter until they all flopped down, panting. Ben was still there, and abruptly Finn wondered if he wished he could join in.

Impulse nudged. Finn felt inside himself for the mysterious power Rey was teaching him to use, hesitated.

_Why the hell not?_

He held out a hand.

Ben blinked...then reached out to touch it.

Finn didn't really know what to expect, but the thin crackle of energy wasn't it. It wasn't like touching skin to skin, more like sensing a low-power deflector shield. And with it came an awareness, a _closeness_. Surprise, odd delight - he wasn't sure whose emotions he was feeling, and he wasn't sure it _mattered_.

Finn heard Rey draw in a sharp breath. "What are you _doing?_" she muttered, and he glanced over at her startled eyes.

And held out his other hand.

The bond _widened_ at her touch. There _were_ three of them now. Finn could still sense the strength of the Dyad between Rey and Ben, like the hum of a power plant; this was something else.

Rey's eyes went half-lidded. Finn looked over at Poe.

He was huddled in the grass, watching them with an expression that mixed hunger with resignation and a touch of anger. Finn's tongue seemed to be paralyzed, but what he thought the other two were thinking also.

"Get in here, Dameron," Ben said gently, stretching his free hand out.

For a moment, Finn thought Poe would refuse, but when Rey reached for him too he gave in.

Fingers closing on fingers; palm against ghostly palm.

The arc of power became a circle, a note of music, a rush of joy. Four united; not into one, but into each other, pushing away doubt and fear. Finn could feel Poe's astonishment, Rey's ecstasy, Ben's wonder; he knew they could sense his breathless delight.

It lasted a long time before ebbing slowly; not from a loss of power, but from a sense of completion. They withdrew from each other tenderly, easing down onto the grass with their hands limp and tingling, though Finn could still somehow feel the slightest trickle from each one if he concentrated.

"What was _that?_" Poe mumbled; he looked wrecked, hair damp with sweat and tear marks on his cheeks. Finn swiped at his own face and was surprised to find it wet.

"A Force bond," Ben said, eyes wide. The blue glow around him seemed to be pulsing slightly. "They're supposed to be a myth."

"So's the Dyad," Rey said. Her eyes were closed, and her smile was just this side of intoxicated.

"Yes, neither of them are exactly emotionless." Ben slid Rey a glance, the corners of his mouth turning up, then looked at Finn. "You have an interesting gift."

Poe rolled over and buried his head in his arms. "But I'm _not Force-sensitive._" It was half-muffled.

"The Force is in everything that's alive," Finn pointed out. He frowned, and reached out towards the hint of pain, laying a hand on Poe's shoulder. "That's not your real problem, Poe. What's the matter?"

The words were mostly indistinct, but they all heard them anyway. "If he can come back, why can't _she?_"

Rey opened her eyes, mouth quirking sadly. Ben bowed his head.

"Force spirits only manifest in times of great need," he said. "Except for Dyad pairs. Obviously."

Finn frowned. "Says who?"

There was a pause. Poe pushed slowly up to sit, and they all looked at Finn, blinking. He waved both hands. "Who makes the rules? Is there a list somewhere?"

Rey squinted, and Ben pursed his lips. "It's...tradition?"

Poe huffed, scrubbing at his face. "In other words, there isn't a rule."

Finn blew out a breath, thinking. "Then it's up to you, isn't it?" he said to Rey.

Her mouth dropped open, and he went on. "Rey, you're the last Jedi. The _only_ Jedi. You're _all_ the Jedi. _You_ make the rules now."

Poe's brows went up, and he started to grin. Rey closed her mouth. "That's ridiculous," she said feebly, and glanced at Ben.

He smiled, but if he said anything Finn couldn't hear it. After a moment Rey straightened. "Okay. Okay, then." She cleared her throat and rested her hands on her knees, schooling her expression to seriousness. "Um. Jedi...Jedi who have passed on can manifest any time they want to."

A peculiar hush followed her words, as if the galaxy were holding its breath.

Nothing happened.

Rey broke into a giggle, and they all relaxed, a little disappointed but -

"It's about time you figured it out," said Luke.

Finn flipped around so fast he almost went tumbling. Master Skywalker - _both_ Master Skywalkers - were just outside their circle, smiling smugly. Finn stared at them, absolutely stunned, as Leia walked past to bend and lay a kiss on Poe's forehead.

"Hey, General Big Deal." Han stood next to Finn, smiling down at him, and Finn tried not to gibber. "Nice job."

"You...they…" Poe's eyes were so wide they looked as if they were going to pop out of his head. He pointed at Han. "_He's_ not a Jedi!"

Leia laughed and patted his cheek, then went to sit by her son, who leaned into her like a tired child. "Are you really going to argue about it, Poe?" She pulled Luke down next to her.

Han squeezed Finn's shoulder, a touch he could barely feel. "It's good to see you, kid, but I gotta go check in with Chewie." He disappeared like a light switching off, and Finn gaped at the Skywalkers, at Poe, at Rey.

Her own eyes were lit, and the smile on her lips was amazement...and triumph.

Finn swallowed, and managed to find his voice. "So...what do _you_ think about using a Star Destroyer for the Jedi academy?"

Luke snorted, Leia's brows went up, Poe laughed out loud, and a cheerful debate began.

And the sun shone on, making the galaxy just a little bit brighter.


End file.
